Yoho yoho a pirate’s life for me! No matter what, you got to love the Pirates franchise, even if the latest installment is a bit on the disappointing side of the plank. But really, you can’t expect much – what could have been done has already been done in the first three movies. Still, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is not something you should just glance over (like the forth Shrek movie). Although the new Pirates lacks a compelling story, it still has the sparkle of excitement from Captain Jack Sparrow. And everyone loves Jack… except hipsters, of course.

Don't be a hipster

Pirates 4 starts a completely different story from its prequels, which most people would find as a wonderful thing, considering how a majority of viewers were getting tired of Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley (I, on the other hand, loved them). Out with the old and in with the new: replacing them are Ian McShane and Penelope Cruz. While I enjoyed watching McShane play his bad guy role, I did not like Cruz all that much (despite her physical appeal). She seems a bit out of place in the series, too clean and not rough enough.

They be mermaids in these waters!

The movie is quite long and in some parts, quite slow as well, especially because there is a lot of attention shown on minor characters. I found these minor characters (the mermaid and the religious guy) to be very tedious and annoying to watch – I just wanted them to die and get them off screen. I didn’t pay $10 to watch a budding romance between two characters who I don’t give a shit about – I want to watch Captain Jack Sparrow for crying out loud!

This island looks familiar

The ending of the movie is not very satisfying; however, the action, one-liners, and scenery make up for what the film lacks. Pirates 4 had a budget of $250 million and has already made well beyond that (over $806 million worldwide). Making that much money, there will probably be another sequel? I guess this goes to show that this is the movie that almost caught the end of Captain Jack…

Marvel/Disney is going to start showing brief 10 min films of minor superheroes before feature films. One of these characters include Dr. Strange, who frankly, I’ve never heard of. Dr. Strange is actually going to be made into a feature length film and is going to be Marvel/Disney’s first collaboration film. It’s really difficult to say whether it’ll turn out to be a success or not. I mean look at Jonah Hex. Based on a western comic book hero that I’ve never heard of, it’s doing absolutely terrible – its production budge was 47 million while the domestic total so far is a bit over 6 million only. But then again, look at Daredevil. A minor Marvel superhero, the film made about 100 million. But no matter what, superhero films will constantly be made in Hollywood.

The new Pirates of the Caribbean film is going to be based on the novel, “On Stranger Tides,” which is about Blackbeard and the journey for the fountain of youth. Apparently, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley will not be in the new Pirates, but I it’s not a big loss, considering Johnny Depp will continue to star in the film. Depp’s character, Captain Jack Sparrow, is the one who made Pirates what it is today after all. Hopefully the fourth installment of this franchise will be much better than the fourth film of another franchise that we all know.

How will they be able to top the previous film? The answer's all in this box.

The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye, a very popular novel by Salinger, is catching the attention of a couple of filmmakers. Some production companies want to turn the book into a movie, despite the author’s negative views on Hollywood. Being a novel about a boy’s internal struggle on life, it’s going to be really difficult to portray Holden’s character on the big screen. Some things are better left alone.

Seriously, where is the craze of 3D coming from. Making new movies with 3D is fine, but doing a re-release of a previous classic? Releasing Lion King in 3D will probably get on some people’s nerves, but it’s the smart thing to do for filmmakers. Obviously because it will make money. However, I doubt that the 3D change will improve the storytelling experience. Instead of playing $10 to see this in the future, just do yourself a favor and watch the original version.